AirBorneo announces temporary adjustments for some flights

 The Sarawak-owned airline says this follows a period of technical grounding affecting a number of aircraft within AirBorneo's ATR72 and DHC-6 Twin Otter fleets.

AirBorneo Airways Sdn Bhd said an estimated 4,000 passengers might experience schedule adjustments as a result of the exercise. (Bernama pic)

KUCHING:

AirBorneo Airways Sdn Bhd has announced a temporary adjustment to flight frequencies on a small number of selected routes across its network, effective July 6 to Oct 24 as part of efforts to improve fleet reliability and strengthen schedule performance.

The Sarawak-owned airline said in a statement that the adjustment followed a period of technical grounding affecting a number of aircraft within AirBorneo’s ATR72 and DHC-6 Twin Otter fleets.

It said these groundings stem from unscheduled maintenance requirements and extended global supply chain constraints affecting the availability of critical aircraft components and spare parts – a challenge currently facing operators across the aviation industry.

“AirBorneo continues to work closely with its engineering partners and the relevant original equipment manufacturers to expedite repairs and return the affected aircraft to service. Rather than continue with short-notice, ad-hoc cancellations, the airline has opted for a structured and transparent revision to its published schedule.

“This gives passengers on the affected routes a confirmed schedule to plan, while allowing the airline to better match its available aircraft to demand and free up airframe time for essential maintenance,” it said.

The airline stressed that the adjustments are limited to selected routes only, with connectivity to all existing destinations maintained. No destinations will be suspended or removed from the network.

“About 594 flights will be adjusted over the period, with affected passengers re-accommodated on the next available flight, either the same day or the following day. A further 1,337 flights will require schedule retiming during the same period.

“In total, an estimated 4,000 passengers may experience schedule adjustments as a result of this exercise. All affected passengers will be managed in accordance with the Malaysian Aviation Consumer Protection Code, including rebooking, refund options, and other applicable passenger support.

“The exercise does not involve any increase in fares on the affected routes,” it said.

Looking ahead, the airline said the network adjustment is a short-term measure as it advances its fleet renewal programme.

“AirBorneo plans to progressively introduce new-generation ATR72-600 and ATR42-600 aircraft between Q3 2027 and Q3 2029, delivering improved reliability, greater operational resilience and a better customer experience,” it said. - FMT